The present invention relates to cable and hose guides, and more particularly to an extended channel for supporting and retaining a cable or hose, and for keeping it from buckling.
Numerous examples are found in the prior art of cables or hoses which connect between relatively movable members and must follow these members as they move relative to each other. Examples of machines having movable members connected by such cables or hoses include lathe beds, elevators, the lifting masts of forklift trucks, and so on. As used herein, therefore, the terms "cable" and "hose" are considered equivalent and are meant to refer equally to single members or plural assemblies of the same.
When used in a forklift truck, for example, a three sided hose guide channel is typically provided to support the hose on the sides and back and keep it in proper position. A pair of such channels may face one another, one on the fixed portion of the forklift mast and the other traveling with the movable portion. A cable or hose which communicates between the fixed and movable mast portions feeds automatically from one channel to the other as the movable mast portion is raised or lowered. Such a channel design is adequate for keeping the hose in place when the hose is relatively short, but as the length of the hose increases or the rigidity of the hose decreases, it becomes increasingly subject to buckling. When it buckles it may fall out of the guide channel.
Some prior art solutions include the use of magnets on the cable or hose to hold it in the channel, or the use of a self-stiffening cable or hose. However, these require modifications to the basic cable or hose structure itself. Pulley arrangements for guiding hoses or cables have also been suggested, but these are complicated and can be expensive. A need therefore remains for an effective yet inexpensive cable and hose guide which will provide the desired security and support for a conventional cable or hose, and which offers the greatest versatility for use in the widest variety of applications.